The International Coral Reef Society (ICRS; previously the International Society for Reef Studies) is an international, not-for profit, scientific society dedicated to the conservation of

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. Co ...

s through science and understanding. Founded in 1980, the primary objective of ICRS is the improvement of scientific knowledge and understanding of coral reefs, both living and

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

Activities

To achieve its objectives the ICRS prints and distributes the journal ''Coral Reefs'' as well as a Society newsletter, ''Reef Encounter''. The ICRS also holds annual meetings and co-sponsors other gatherings, symposia and conferences relating to coral reefs.

Symposium

ICRS helps organize the International Coral Reef Symposium (ICRS). The most recent symposium was held in 2022, in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

. The symposium has previously been held in

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...

, Cairns, Queensland,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

(2012);

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

, United States (2008),

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

, Japan (2004),

Bali Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...

, Indonesia (2000),

Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...

, Panama (1996),

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

(1992),

Townsville, Queensland Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...

, Australia (1988),

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austr ...

French Polynesia )Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze") , anthem = , song_type = Regional anthem , song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" , image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of Frenc ...

(1985),

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, the Philippines (1980), Miami (1977), on board the M.V. ''Marco Polo'' in Australian waters (1974), and

Mandapam Camp Mandapam Camp was built in the early 1900s by the British Government to house migrant plantation workers coming to India from Sri Lanka. The Camp is located in South India, 700 km South of Chennai (formerly known as Madras), the capital of th ...

, India (1969, the first symposium). Published proceedings of the ICRS are available at ''ReefBase''.

Awards

The Darwin Medal, the most prestigious award given by the International Society for Reef Studies, is presented every four years at the International Coral Reef Symposium. It is awarded to a senior ICRS member who is recognized worldwide for major contributions throughout her or his career. The medal has been awarded seven times; recipients are David Stoddart, Peter Glynn, Ian Macintyre, Yossi Loya, Charlie Veron,

Terry Hughes Terry Hughes may refer to: * Terry Hughes (baseball), American Major League Baseball player * Terry Hughes (biologist), Irish-Australian biologist * Terry Hughes (director), British comedy television director * Terry Hughes (politician), Califor ...

, and Jeremy Jackson.Darwin Medal
International Coral Reef Society.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:International Coral Reef Society Reefs International scientific organizations Biology societies